Grapefruit Diet – Pros and Cons

The grapefruit diet, also known as the Hollywood diet or the Mayo diet, has a long history in the United States. It has been around since 1930 and is known as a fast weight loss method until now with many variations and the only essential thing that cannot be changed is half a serving of grapefruit before each meal. Grapefruit is claimed to have fat-burning properties, and with diets that encourage meat consumption, this combination of high-cholesterol foods with grapefruit seems to burn fat faster.

The foundation of the diet itself has been identified as a low carbohydrate, low protein diet averaging 800 to 1000 calories per day. On a diet of fewer than 1,000 calories per day, most people will lose weight even without consuming grapefruit, but how a half serving of grapefruit before each meal stimulates the weight loss process is still unknown. He points out that so far no scientific study has been able to demonstrate the power of grapefruit to burn fat.

Here are a sample of eating plans based on the grapefruit diet:

Breakfast

1. Half a serving of grapefruit or 4 oz unsweetened grapefruit juice
2. Two eggs, any cooking style.
3. Two slices of bacon, cooked medium.
4. You can also add black coffee.

Lunch

1. Half a serving of grapefruit or 4 oz. of unsweetened grapefruit juice.
2. Salad, any type of dressing, any size.
3. Meat, any type, unlimited quantity.

Dinner

1. Half a serving of grapefruit or 4 oz. of unsweetened grapefruit juice.
2. Meat, any type, unlimited quantity.
3. Any red or green vegetable cooked with seasonings or a salad. A cup of coffee or tea.

snack before bed

8 ounces of skim milk with sweetener, the alternative is a glass of tomato juice.

Snacks between meals are not allowed.

advantages

1. It consists of 12 days of diet with 2 days off, so you have 2 days to eat what you want.
2. The program offers a fairly rapid weight loss: 18 pounds in the first 18 days.
3. For those who don’t like the idea of ​​going to the gym, this program does not have any instructions regarding exercise or training.
4. Affordable and simple.

cons

1. It is not healthy to eat too many sour citrus fruits throughout the day for long periods of time. It will increase the level of acidity in your stomach and increase the probability of having a stomach ache, gastritis or even ulcer diseases. If you are suffering from any of these or other digestive tract foods, you should stop consuming any acidic foods such as grapefruit, lemons, or oranges.
2. The program eliminates things that are needed in a balanced diet, such as carbohydrates.
3. Limited varieties of food restrict you from improving your eating habits and can cause boredom, monotony, and taste fatigue.
4. You will regain weight as soon as you stop the diet.
5. Unlike other citrus fruits, grapefruits are known to interact with some medications such as felodipine, a drug used to control high blood pressure. Recent studies show that felodipine in combination with grapefruit juice can cause toxic effects.
6. If you start this diet, monitor how you feel every day, there are reports that some experienced people run at the start of the program, and this can lead to dehydration if not treated promptly.
7. There are opinions that grapefruit inhibits the production of insulin from the pancreas. If you suffer from diabetes, you can even go into a coma because the insulin level drops suddenly.
8. This is a list of drugs that can cause unpredictable and dangerous effects if combined with grapefruit juice:

• Statins (cholesterol drugs): lovastatin (Mevacor), atorvastatin Lipitor, simvastatin Zocor, simvastatin/ezetimibe Vytorin
• Antihistamines: Ebastine, Seldane
• Calcium channel blockers (blood pressure medications): nimodipine (Nimotop), felodipine (Nitrendipine, Plendil), pranidipine, nisoldipine (Sular), nicardipine (Cardene), verapamil (Verelan)
• Psychiatric medications: buspirone (Buspar), triazolam (Halcion), carbamazepine (Tegretol), diazepam (Valium), midazolam (Versed), sertraline (Zoloft)
• Intestinal drugs: Cisapride, withdrawn from the US market (Propulsid)
• Immune Suppressants: Cyclosporine (Neoral), (tacrolimus) Prograf
• Pain Medications: Methadone
• Impotence (erectile dysfunction) medication: sildenafil (Viagra)
• Anti-HIV drugs: saquinavir (Invirase) Antiarrhythmics: amiodarone (Cordarone)

Keep in mind that you don’t have to understand all of these medications, just check with your doctor beforehand if you plan to start this diet.

Conclution

With so many crashes and side effects, doing this long term is not recommended. There are people who claim to do this for years with good results, but you should not try your luck just to lose a few kilos of weight. Remember that there are many weight loss programs that offer a long-term healthy solution and a quick result.